Chapter Eighteen

After the first lecture the next morning, we all trooped out of classes into a coach bus. Except, of course, those without consent from their parents. It took only a thirty-minute ride before we got there; a bit longer than I expected considering that I could see the top of it from my room.



As the bus pulled up in front of the considerably tall building, I could not help but take in its magnificence as I walked down the bus with Kayla right behind me, her bag strung across her shoulders. It was almost at the height of a skyscraper and surely an impressive tower, if I may add.



It seemed to have measured a lot of years in its existence. Yet, it didn't have the look of a scrappy, old, abandoned house. It was very well-cleaned which was not entirely surprising as it most probably earns its upkeep from the fees for the tour around it.



It was surely a pride for the architects in charge of it, considering the very beautiful layout it had. Not to mention the beautiful artistic drawings engraved on it.



It didn't seem to lose out in magnificence to the old museums in town.



Kayla strode beside me, seemingly just as enthralled as I was by the beauty. She held the strap of her bag as she walked, her eyes revealing a rare hint of awe.



"It's beautiful, right?" I asked, giving her a side look and she nodded. I looked forward at the teacher escorting us.



Ms. Adams wasn't our escort for the day. Instead, it was a teacher from another class whose name I heard was Mrs. Lestrade and she was doing quite a good job at it, considering the way she led us while dressed in her flowery patterned gown yet able to command the crowd.



She turned to us at this moment, her gaze skimming over all of us in just one movement as she held her purse in her armpits. She looked just as stern as her stance showed.



"Now if I may begin," She started. "In a minute or so, the tour guide will be here to lead us into the tower. I suppose you are all aware of the basic rules and regulations in the flyer you were given."



She paused for a moment looking at us again and I could tell she was obviously bothered by the lack of responses to show that we all had read it.



I snorted under my breath. What was she expecting? That a bunch of teenagers who would rather have their time spent watching YouTube shorts or playing video games read the long and detailed rules on the flyer?



I hadn't read them in detail either as I already had an idea of what it was all about by reading the headings.



Mrs. Lestrade gave an exasperated sigh. And so, she began to lecture us.



"You must walk with the group at all times. Be orderly and follow me everywhere I direct you, " she said. "Don't make any loud noises or cause any disturbances or you will be punished."



She went on and off for about five minutes before finally stopping when the tour guide came out. He was a lanky and tall man who had a very wide smile to offer as he approached us.



When he reached us, he greeted Mrs. Lestrade. "Hello, nice to meet you. I apologize for making you wait so long. I had to do some things before joining you."



Mrs. Lestrade gave a small polite smile in return. "It's nothing, Mr..."



The man cut in, realizing she did not know what his name was. " Steven. You can call me Steven, ma'am."



"Ah...yes, Mr. Steven, " Mrs. Lestrade answered, now turning her attention toward us. "I suppose you are ready to welcome us now?"



" Yeah."



Mr. Steven turned to us with a wider smile showing his set of even white teeth. "Welcome everyone. I'll be your tour guide today. You follow behind me as we move and I'll explain all you need to know."



We immediately followed behind him as we entered. The interior of the building was just as impressive as it looked outside. The guard seemed to know the layout of the tower quite well as he described everything in detail.



Although normally I would be bored to death having to listen to the history of the artifacts in the tower, Mr. Steven was quite a skilled tour guide.



He cracked jokes occasionally entertaining us as we walked.



I was soon bored and getting hungry though and as we stood at the stairs while he explained how the wolf statues at the side came to be, I leaned on the stair railing to take a break.



I could not help but notice a mural painting in the distance. It was placed on the wall downstairs and faced me directly so I could see the people on it. A young woman was seated on a stool and a man sat on the floor beside her and leaning his head on her legs.



It was quite a beautiful painting however I could not help but notice two things about the painting. One was the crown on the man's head and the second was the attire they were both wearing. I could also tell from the background that it was painted a long time ago.



Is this the painting of the King who owned the palace and his lover?



I was very curious about it and I could not tell why the place was giving me such energy. Just then, someone accidentally bumped into me and the phone in my hand fell from my hand.



I immediately looked down hearing the sound of my phone crashing and I turned to chastise the person for not being careful. But when I saw that we had attracted the attention of everyone and the girl who had bumped into me looked very apologetic, I calmed down.



"Oh my God, I'm so sorry," She gasped, clasping her palms.



I sighed. "Never-"



"It wasn't intentional, I swear. I'll help you get it."



She was about to go downstairs and get the phone but I didn't let her.



I smiled. "Anyone can make mistakes. You seemed to be in a hurry earlier, you can go do what you wanted to do. I'll get it."



" Oh, thanks a lot. If it has broken, let me know in class, okay? I'll refund you."



I nodded and sighed as she rushed off. Hopefully, my phone would not be broken.



I got downstairs and found it lying on the floor below the stairs. I picked it up and scrutinized and sure enough, it already had lots of cracks on it. Thankfully, it did not affect it from working.



I slid it into my pockets and was about to return upstairs when I noticed that something was strange.